This invention relates to a gas/liquid separator particularly useful for separating crude oil and natural gas from recovered oil and gas wells.
In the past, various types of gas/liquid separators have been used in oil fields for separating valuable crude oil from natural gas in well fluids pumped from oil or gas wells.
The present invention provides a gas/liquid separator having a free running rotor. A gas/liquid inlet mixture, such as well fluid, can be admitted under pressure into the rotor for impinging on the rotor to rotate it about its axis. Impingement and centrifugal force exerted by the rotor on the inlet fluid can separate liquid from gas in the fluid.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,949 discloses a gas/liquid separator having a freely rotating ring for separating liquid from gas. The separated liquid is extracted from the periphery of the ring by a pitot tube. However, well fluid from oil or gas wells can contain iron particles, sand and other debris from an oil well, which could unduly erode a pitot tube.
There is a need to provide a gas/liquid separator which can effectively remove as much liquid as possible from gas in a gas/liquid inlet mixture. There is also a need to provide a separator which can effectively separate liquid, and particulate solids, from gas in well fluids without the need for using a pitot tube or similar pickup.